Weatherill's lucky 13 and a reducing public service

As Premier, and now Treasurer, Jay Weatherill faces the first full day after revealing South Australia's new Cabinet, he has spent the day placing a positive spin on what one Labor stalwart has described as somewhere between unusual and bizarre.

Mr Weatherill told 891 Breakfast the Cabinet reduction of two Ministers would save the South Australian tax payer 'somewhere in excess of $16 million'.

"It's a very substantial saving that we have made through the reduction in two portfolios."

Premier Weatherill said yesterday's changes had been driven by private and government sectors being expected to reduce expenditure under current financial circumstances.

"We had to apply the same disciplines to ourselves."

Mr Weatherill said the current public servant levels of 100,000 would be reduced over the next four years, but was not able to supply specific numbers at the time of questioning.

"The target is to achieve the Budget savings, and that can be achieved in a number of ways.

"It's nowhere near 25,000 job cuts that are being proposed by the Liberal Party."

Opposition Leader Isobel Redmond attacked yesterday's Cabinet changes, accusing Mr Weatherill of being a part-time Treasurer who is the fulltime Premier of the state.

Ms Redmond said the State Government planned to reduce levels of staffing by 6,000, and the Liberal proposal of reducing the staffing levels by 25,000 would be achieved over more than one term, without redundancies, and by utilising the natural attrition through resignations and retirements.

"We will have an audit commission after coming to office to determine whether there needs to be any change, but primarily we recognise that we need to cut the waste of this government."

Ms Redmond would not be drawn to comment on rumours that Alexander Downer was expected to launch a leadership challenge, or that a conversation was held last year with Mr Downer over a deal for him to step into the party leadership role after the next election.